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Meaning
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Pronunciation
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I like it, and the connection to the poisonous plant does mot deter me.
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Wiktionary claims an additional, maybe more probable etymology for κάστωρ (kástōr): Doric Greek κάστον (káston) “wood”. This is the definition given by the grammarian Hēsýchios (or Hesychius) of Alexandria (5th- or 6th-century AD), who specifically uses the more general Greek term ξύλον (xúlon, xýlon) “wood, timber”. Later, Furnée also compares κάστωρ with both ἄκαστος (ákastos), genitive ἀκάστου (akástou) “Montpelier maple (Acer monspessulanum)” and κόστον (kóston) “wooden part(s) of a wagon or carrier”.
Compare also the feminine Sanskrit word कस्तूरी (kastūrī), which appears to have originally meant “musk (in general)” but now specifically means “beaver musk, castoreum”; in any case, the word kastūrī is itself from Proto-Indo-European *kestor- “musk”. See also the neuter Sanskrit word काष्ठ (kāṣṭha) “wood, timber” - a cognate of the aforesaid Greek word κάστον.
And, yes, the Latin word castor, genitive castoris and its Greek cognate κάστωρ (kástōr) do literally mean “beaver”. Castor is, additionally, the Linnaean taxonomic genus name for the family Castoridae – the beavers, which currently refer to two extant species: 1. Castor canadensis or the North American beaver, also called the American beaver or the Canadian beaver; 2. Castor fiber or the European beaver, which is somewhat misleadingly named since the animal is native to Eurasia and its territory extends throughout that area. Furthermore, while its population is certainly concentrated within Europe, its territory has rarely been restricted solely to that area.
Wiktionary:
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/castor#Latin - Latin castor
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%CE%BA%CE%AC%CF%83%CF%84%CF%89%CF%81#Ancient_Greek - Greek κάστωρ (kástōr)
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%82%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%80#Sanskrit - Sanskrit कस्तूरी (kastūrī)
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Compare also the feminine Sanskrit word कस्तूरी (kastūrī), which appears to have originally meant “musk (in general)” but now specifically means “beaver musk, castoreum”; in any case, the word kastūrī is itself from Proto-Indo-European *kestor- “musk”. See also the neuter Sanskrit word काष्ठ (kāṣṭha) “wood, timber” - a cognate of the aforesaid Greek word κάστον.
And, yes, the Latin word castor, genitive castoris and its Greek cognate κάστωρ (kástōr) do literally mean “beaver”. Castor is, additionally, the Linnaean taxonomic genus name for the family Castoridae – the beavers, which currently refer to two extant species: 1. Castor canadensis or the North American beaver, also called the American beaver or the Canadian beaver; 2. Castor fiber or the European beaver, which is somewhat misleadingly named since the animal is native to Eurasia and its territory extends throughout that area. Furthermore, while its population is certainly concentrated within Europe, its territory has rarely been restricted solely to that area.
Wiktionary:
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/castor#Latin - Latin castor
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%CE%BA%CE%AC%CF%83%CF%84%CF%89%CF%81#Ancient_Greek - Greek κάστωρ (kástōr)
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%82%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%80#Sanskrit - Sanskrit कस्तूरी (kastūrī)
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Makes me think of "pastor", "Castor oil", and "castrate".
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Castor is too similar to 'castoro' (beaver in Italian). I prefer Kastor for the mythological link and star.
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My Baby Brother is named Castor Polix so I have a personal connection to the name that is based off the character from Face-off and the astrological twins. We call him Caz, Cas, or some people use Caus (cause) for short.
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For me, it makes me think of Castor sugar and and Castor oil. However, I do quite like the name because of how strong, yet friendly it sounds.
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Super original name that does not sound like you tried too hard to be out there. I love it!
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Castor Troy is a fictitious character in the 1997 action film Face/Off, portrayed by actors Nicolas Cage and John Travolta. Castor, a sociopathic terrorist, has a brother named Pollux, one of his partners-in-crime.
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In the Greek myths there were two brothers named Castor and Pollux. They went on the Argo with Jason on his quest for the Golden Fleece.
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Castor and Pollux are the twin siblings of Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra.
In one version of the tale, Zeus seduces the twins' mother, Leda, by turning himself into a swan. Castor and Pollux were, in turn, born from the resulting eggs.
In another, Leda finds the eggs and raises them as her own. Some versions of the tale have only Pollux being born of Zeus, and Castor by Leda's mortal husband, Tyndareus. This resulted in Pollux being immortal, and Castor not so. When Castor died, it was said that he and Pollux were not seperated, and Pollux in turn begged Zeus to share his gift with Castor.
Castor was a great horseman, while Pollux was an accomplished boxer. Castor was the more venerated of the two brothers.
Together, they are the Alpha and Beta stars of the constellation Gemini "The Twins".
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In one version of the tale, Zeus seduces the twins' mother, Leda, by turning himself into a swan. Castor and Pollux were, in turn, born from the resulting eggs.
In another, Leda finds the eggs and raises them as her own. Some versions of the tale have only Pollux being born of Zeus, and Castor by Leda's mortal husband, Tyndareus. This resulted in Pollux being immortal, and Castor not so. When Castor died, it was said that he and Pollux were not seperated, and Pollux in turn begged Zeus to share his gift with Castor.
Castor was a great horseman, while Pollux was an accomplished boxer. Castor was the more venerated of the two brothers.
Together, they are the Alpha and Beta stars of the constellation Gemini "The Twins".
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I absolutely love this name. I've wanted to use it for a character for one of my stories for ages, but I've never had the perfect character to go with the name. I do now, however, and I'm very excited about that. Anyway, I love the name and I'm happy to finally be able to use it somewhere.
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Makes me think of a nude concrete statue.
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The name Castor is also the name of the castor bean from which ricin can be produced.
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"Castor" is simply "beaver" in Latin, from Greek "kastor". "Castor" (e.g., Castor canadensis) is the Latin genus name for beaver.
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Unfortunately Castor reminds me of castor-oil. A beaver is called "castor" in Latin. Castor canadensis and Castor fiber. Castor may also remind people of the word "castrate".
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Means 'the shining one' in Ancient Greek. Originally spelt Kastor.
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Comments are left by users of this website. They are not checked for accuracy.
Overall a good, strong name, and I'm mostly saying this because I don't want to be harsh, but what it sounds like made it weird for me.